Apparatus for cracking hydrocarbons



T. E. YALE'Y. APPARATUS FOR CRACKING HYDROCARBONS.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 19. I917.

Patented Feb. 3, 1920.

- T INVENTOR, WITNESS I Z442 ATTORNEYS.

THEODORE E. YALEY, OF JAMESTOWN, NEW YORK.

APPARATUS FOR CRACKING HYDROCARBONS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed April 19, 1917. Serial No. 163,098.

I To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THEODORE E. YALEY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Jamestown, county of Chautauqua, and. State of New York, have invented certain new and usefullmprovements in Apparatus for Cracking Hydrocarbons, of which the following is a specification.

My invention is in the nature of an improvement in apparatus of the above character disclosed in an application for patent filed by me February 19, 1917, and which has been given Serial No. 149,442. Briefly stated, the process of said prior application consists in introducing crude or heavy oil or petroleum in successive spurts into a highly heated retort in which it is immediately converted into vapor and a large percentage thereof cracked or broken up into oil of lighter specific gravity such as gasolene, benzin and the like. From the retort the oil is conveyed through a series of condensers in which the lighter hydrocarbons are separated from the heavier and the liquid from the gaseous. My present invention relates more particularly to the retort in which the oil is cracked and vaporized and one of the condensers by which the heavier hydrocarbons are separated from the lighter. In the accompanying drawings I have shown two of the preferred forms of the invention and described the same in the following specification. It is to be understood, however, that the specific disclosure is for the purpose of exemplification only and that the scope of the invention is defined in the following claims in which I have endeavored to distinguish it from the prior art so far as known to me without, however, relinquishing or abandoning any portion or feature thereof.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a diagrammatm view partlv 1n elevation and partly in vertical section showing an oil cracking and refining apparatus embodying my invention and Fig. 2 is a horizontal section showing a modification of a portion of .the apparatus.

Referring first to Fig. 1, the retort in which the oil is cracked and vaporized is shown in section at 3 as mounted in a furnace 4 which completely surrounds said retort which is so supported in said furnace by brackets 5 as to provide for the passage of flames and products of combustion completely about the retort so that the latter tion of the oil in the retort.

may .be kept at a high temperature throughout. 'The furnace is heated in any well known or approved manner, as for example by a burner 6, and the products of combustion are carried off through a vertical stack 7 as is common in this kind of construction. Oil is supplied to the retort from a supply tank 8 through a pipe 9 provided with a ball valve 10 which serves to prevent back flow or the entrance of gases into the tank 8 under the pressure developed by the vaporiza- The retort Patented Feb. 3, 1920.

shown in Fig. 1 is substantially cylindrical its entrance into the retort flows and spreads in a thin film or area over a considerable part of the bottom of the retort, which being highly heated causes the oil to be im v mediatelyv vaporized and cracked. The vapor from the retort flows upward through the vertical pipe 13 within the flue 7 where its high temperature is maintained by the products of combustion and then upwardly at an incline through the pipe 14 to the worm 15 of the condenser 16.

Obviously, the vapors are more or less cooled asthey flow upward through the inclined pipe 14 causing the heavier components of the vapors to be condensed and to flow back into the retort. The length and diameter of the pipe 14 are governed by the proportion of the heavier hydrocarbons which it is desired to return to the still or retort in this manner.

' The worm 15 receives the uncondensed vapors from the pipe 14 and being surrounded by a cooling medium, shown as a water filled tank 17 causes a further portion of the heavier hydrocarbons to condense in said coil. Obviously, the heavier liquids are condensed before the lighter liquids and I have found it of advantage to return more or less of the heavier liquids condensed in the condenser 16 to the still to be again submitted to the cracking and vaporizing process. For this purpose I tap the coils of the -worm 15 as at 18, 19 and 20, connecting thereto the pipes 21, 22, 23, leading to a manifold 24. Each of said pipes is preferably provided with a hand valve 25, 26, 27

by which it can be closed off from the mani-' fold 24. Manifold 24 is connected by pipe 28 with the interior of the retort and 1n the specific construction shown pipe 28 leads to the same nozzle 12 which serves for the pipe to prevent back pressure in the condenser or the rush of gasdirectly thereto from the retort, I provide a ball valve30 in pipe 28.

From and after the condenser 16 the construction is substantially as described and shown in m said earlier application. The worm 15 is continued in the form of pipe 31 into a closed tank 32 which is more or less filled with oil, the end of pipe 31 being carried along the bottom of tank 32 and perforated as at 33 for the escape'of the vapors and any condensed liquid which is carried beyond the condenser 15. The

V of the oil in the tank 32 the liquid escaping from pipe 31 is of course simply mixed-with the oil in the tank, but the vapors escaping from said pipe are more or less condensed in the body of oil 34 therein as they rise toward the surface. The level is regulated by an overflow pipe 35 which isswiveled upon an outlet pipe 36 connected to the tank. By swinging the pipe 35 about its swivel'joint the height of its upper end and consequently the level of the liquid regulated.

From the tank 32 the are drawn by a pump 37 and forced through a second worm 38 in a condenser 39 under a pressure regulated by the pressure reducmg valve 40 into a is drawn'ofl' fromsaid tank from time to in the tank may be uncondensed vapors time through the valve controlled pipe 42'.

The operation of the system has been for the-most part described in connection with description of the apparatus, but may summarized as follows: The crude or 8 through the heavy oil flows from the tank pipe 9 into the previously heated stillor retort where it drips or flows onto the apex of the conical bottom and distributes itself in a thin layer. The heat of the retort which is maintained above the cracking temperature immediately vaporizes the oil there n, causing an instantaneous pressure which temporarily checks the flow..of oil from the reservoirand closes the icheck valve 10. The pressure in the system betank 41. The fixedgas I and function the tween the retort and the pump 37 is, however, normally maintained at about or slightly below the atmospheric and consequently the newly formed vapor, including 1 the lighter hydrocarbons which have been formed by the cracking of the oil, flow into the condenser again reducing the pressure in the still to substantially atmospheric when a further fiowof oil takes place from the reservoir and is at once vaporized. The vapor passing up the inclined pipe 14 deposits therein the heaviest components thereof which return d'own said pipe to the still and are again subjected to the cracking operation and vaporized. The uncondensed vapor from the pipe l4flows into the condenser 16 and is more or less condensed therein. The

condensate or so much of the heavier portions thereof as it is desired to resubmit to the cracking operations is-drawn off through the taps provided for that purpose and reintroduced to the still at the nozzle 12. The vapors uncondensed in the condenser 16 and any liquids not drawn ofi' by the taps are introduced through the perforated pipe 33 into the bottom of the body of oil 34 with which they are mixed, the liquid portion and the more readily condensable portion of the vapor remaining in tank 32 and the vapor gases being drawn oil through the pipe 43 by the pump 37 and discharged under the back pressure of the valve 40 into the worm 38 of condenser 39 where substantially the remaining condensable portion of the, vapors are condensed and collected in the tank41. As above stated, the fixed gases are drawn off through the valved pipe 42.

Wherea still of greater capacity is de-' sired, it is preferably tomake it of oblong shape, as shown in Fig; 2, the bottom 44 tak ing the form of an inverted V in cross section and the oil being distributed at the apex or ridge 45 of the bottom a longitudinal pipe 46- supplied with oil by a suitable number of pipes 47, 47 connected to the tank 8 by a manifold 9'; A pipe 28' connectsthe "longitudinal perforated pipe 46 with the"- condenser. 16 and answers in construction pipe 28 of the form of the device illustrated in Fig. 1. The form of the furnace is 'of oourse correspondingly changed. By my improvement quickly distribute the oil over a large area of heated still bottom,

thus practically instantaneously vaporizing andcracking the same and maintain the vaporsabove the cracking temperature for a suflicien't length it is possible to i of time to further crack the same by en- 'tirely surrounding the still with .thehot glases of the furnace and further conduct' t e toms illustrated are not essential to secure some advantage from my invention, which gases through the pipe 13 in the fl -2 Obviously the particular forms of still bot-" may be realized provided the still bottom is inclined sufliciently to facilitate the distribution of oil thereover.

I have found, however, that the particular forms shown are the most advantageous. Other advantages of my improved apparatus are that the elongated inclined pipe 14 cause s the heavier hydrocarbons to condense and flow back into the still for re-treatment and any desired fraction may be returned from the condenser 16 to the still for the same purpose.

I claim:

In a device of the class described a retort, means for heating the retort to a crackmg and vaporizing temperature, a condenser, a vapor pip'e leading from the retort to the condenser, a supply tank, a nozzle Within the retort, -a connection leading from the supply tank to the nozzle and an automatic valve in said connection for preventing access of vapors to the tank, a plpe connecting the condenser with said nozzle vfor returning condensate thereto, and an automatic valve in said pipe for preventing the movement of vapor under pressure through said pipe to the condenser.

THEODORE YALEY. 

